UFC 141 Preview
The UFC has continued to add smaller weight classes with the announcement of the Flyweight (125 lbs) Tournament to start next year. Although there are more and more light fighters one of the biggest draws will always be the Heavyweight Division. This week the UFC might have to put some more reinforcement in the octagon because the Heavyweight division will be in full swing. The two biggest fighters in the UFC will face off as the Octagon will support over 500 lbs in the UFC 141 main event. Brock Lesnar stands at 6’3” and weighs in at 265 lbs while Allistair Overeem stands at 6’5” and weighs in at 256 lbs. These two fighters are by far the biggest in the UFC and will face off for the biggest opportunity in their careers. The winner of this fight will move on to face Junior dos Santos for the Heavyweight Championship, dos Santos won the belt at UFC on Fox earlier in the year. Brock Lesnar has had a quick rise in the UFC as he lost his first fight in 2008 but then won four in a row including two title defences after beating Randy Couture for the belt at the end of 2008. Since then Lesnar has been considered one of the best fighters in the Heavyweight division but it has not been without challenge. In 2010 Lesnar had a bout with no fighter opposite of him as he was diagnosed with Diverticulitis, a disease that attacks the colon. Lesnar took some time off but still fought Cain Velasquez and lost the Heavyweight Title. As he prepared for a comeback Lesnar saw his symptoms return and was forced to have surgery to stop the disease forcing him to take time off. Many believed the surgery could have been the end of Lesnar’s career but he refused to let that happen as he will make his first appearance in the UFC in over a year as he looks to get back to the top of the Heavyweight ladder and will have to go through Allistair Overeem to get there. Overeem has never fought in the UFC but is one of the best fighters in MMA and has been for years. With 47 fights under his belt Overeem has seen it all and has become one of the biggest star of MMA in the world. He has not made a big impact in North America however has he has spent his career fighting in Europe and Asia. As a superstar in these areas of the world Overeem will look to make an impact in North America by beating Lesnar and moving on to fight for the UFC Heavyweight title. The UFC title is the last conquest for Overeem after winning the Strikeforce Heavyweight title, Dream Heavyweight title, and the K-1 Grand Prix. Not only did Overeem win all of these but he held all of these titles at the same time becoming the first fighter to do so in the MMA. Overeem has had his way with many different promotions but he will be entering the prime of MMA with the UFC and will be right at home as he has faced the likes of Chuck Liddell, Vitor Belfort, Fabricio Werdum, Antonio Rogerio Nogueira, and Mauricio Rua. With most heavyweight fights the fans can expect a slugfest but in this fight it could truly go either way. Overeem is a K-1 Champion and a great kickboxer and could have the advantage on the feet with 8 KOs in his career. Lesnar has shown some power on his feet as well with 3 KOs in his 8 fights but Lesnar is much more comfortable on the ground. Lesnar has some of the best takedowns in the UFC as his speed and strength help him to overwhelm many of his opponents earning him a 58% takedown percentage. If Lesnar takes Overeem down he will need to be careful as Overeem has had more success as 10 of his 35 wins have come via submission. It seems like everything will be in favour of Overeem as he is a better submission artist and is better on standing. Overeem also has the advantage of experience with 35 wins to Lesnar’s 5. It seems like wherever the fight goes Overeem has the advantage but Lesnar has been able to find out ways to win against opponents who were much more experienced than himself. Although Lesnar is refocused and back to a better training regiment I think Overeem has the advantage in this bout and expect a third round submission win by The Reem as he will move on as the #1 contender.
Before the Heavyweights step into the octagon the other end of the spectrum will be features in the co-main event. Donald Cerrone and Nate Diaz will face off before the Heavyweight bout in a lightweight matchup that could have big Lightweight title ramifications. Cerrone is one of the best strikers in the Lightweight division and has made an impact since joining the UFC. After being one of the top contenders in the WEC Cerrone moved to the UFC with the merger and has been in four fights so far. He has only gone the distance once in the UFC as he has ended the other three fights. Cerrone has 1 KO in the UFC but is also great on the ground with two submissions in his UFC career. He will take on Nate Diaz who entered the UFC when he won The Ultimate Fighter and since then has carved out his own space among the lightweight division. Diaz is primarily a Jiu Jitsu Practitioner who is also one of the most creative submission artists in the UFC. Although Diaz is known for his Jiu Jitsu Diaz showed that his boxing has gotten much better when he face Takanori Gomi and dominated him standing before he submitted him for the win. Both fighters are considered the top of the lightweight division and with Frankie Edgar taking on Ben Henderson in February the winner of this game could be the next #1 contender for the Lightweight Belt. This could be more true for Donald Cerrone who has yet to lose in the UFC with his last loss coming against Ben Henderson for the WEC Title in 2010. If Cerrone wins he might expect at least a #1 contender fight if not a shot at the title. Diaz might need to win a few more if he can pull out the win against Cerrone as he just came off a two fight losing streak and will be looking to create a streak and put a big win in his resume. Although these two fighters will represent the lighter classes and should show most fans that the lightweights can put on great fights. Expect a lot of fireworks in this fight as both fighters are not known for going the distance in fights.
Fight Card:
Main Event:
Brock Lesnar vs. Alistair “The Reem” Overeem (PPV)
Main Card:
Nate Diaz vs. Donald “Cowboy” Cerrone (PPV)
Jon Fitch vs. Johny Hendricks (PPV)
Vladimir “The Janitor” Matyushenko vs. Alexander “The Mauler” Gustafsson (PPV)
Nam Phan vs. Jimy “The Kid” Hettes (PPV)
Undercard:
Ross “The Real Deal” Pearson vs. Junior Assuncao (Sportsnet)
Anthony “The Assassin” Njokuani vs. Danny “Last Call” Castillo (Sportsnet)
Dong “Stun Gun” Hyun Kim vs. Sean “The Punisher” Pierson (Facebook)
Jacob “Christmas” Volkmann vs. Efrain “Hecho en Mexico” Escudero (Facebook)
Matthew Riddle vs. Luis “Beicao” Ramos (Facebook)
Manny “The Anvil” Gamburyan vs. Diego “The Gun” Nunes (Facebook)
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